An alleged scam worth almost Rs 58 lakh in the Union government’s meritorious students scholarship scheme for students of minorities has come to light in Bhopal, and an FIR has been registered against almost 40 schools in the city.
According to sources, the Bhopal Police Crime Branch has registered an FIR in this connection.
It is alleged that the schools in question are operating only up to Class X, yet they have been allegedly claiming scholarship money meant for meritorious students of Classes XI and XII from the minorities.
The scholarship amount provided by the Union government’s Ministry of Minority Welfare is said to be Rs 5,944 annually for each student. It is learnt that the said schools had fraudulently registered a total of about 975 ineligible students, in whose name they were taking the scholarship amount.
The scholarship money was allegedly taken fraudulently for the year 2021-22.
Crime Branch Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Shailendra Singh Chauhan said on Wednesday that the police have launched investigations into the scam, and further details are awaited.